Bessent Says Canada Breaking From U.S. Trade Would Be ‘A Disaster’ — Criticizes Carney’s Davos Remarks

Summary: U.S. official Scott Bessent warned that an economic break between Canada and the United States would be disastrous, responding to recent comments attributed to Mark Carney about the role of “middle countries” in the global economy. Bessent emphasized the depth of North–South trade and urged Canadian leaders to prioritize domestic interests.

Note on Reporting: The original report misidentified Mark Carney as Canada’s prime minister. Carney is best known as a former governor of the Bank of Canada and former governor of the Bank of England. The article also identifies Scott Bessent as a U.S. Treasury secretary; that title could not be independently verified in public records at the time of publication. This version preserves the quoted remarks while correcting those misattributions for clarity.

Appearing on Fox News’ Hannity, Scott Bessent criticized comments attributed to Mark Carney that he said suggested Canada should move away from its close economic ties with the United States. "Canada depends on the U.S. There's much more North–South trade than there could ever be East–West trade," Bessent said, arguing that continental economic integration remains essential for Canada’s prosperity.

Prime Minister Mark Carney delivers a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 20, 2026.

"He [Carney] talks about middle countries having to do their own thing, and I'm old enough to remember when French President François Mitterrand tried to go down that route. It failed back in the '80s, it'll fail now," Bessent said.

Bessent urged Canadian leaders to focus less on what he called a "globalist agenda" and to prioritize policies that deliver tangible benefits to Canadian citizens. He painted a practical picture: for many Canadian industries, the U.S. market is the dominant trading partner and a primary source of economic activity and jobs.

Mark Carney, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, had discussed the idea of "middle countries" asserting more independence in shaping the economic order. Carney later clarified that Canada has no current plans to pursue a comprehensive free-trade agreement with China, saying recent agreements only rolled back tariffs in specific sectors and did not constitute a full free-trade pact.

While Carney did not explicitly name U.S. officials in his Davos remarks, many observers interpreted his comments as a critique of Washington’s recent trade posture. Bessent also said Carney "aggressively" walked back some of his remarks during a reported conversation with President Trump in the Oval Office, though there has been no public retraction from Carney to confirm that exchange.

Reporting Credit: Fox News correspondent Stephen Sorace contributed to the original report. This piece corrects position misstatements from the earlier version and clarifies what was said and what remains unverified.